• An Indonesian man walks out of a damaged house as he checks on his belongings after the 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia. EPA / STR
    An Indonesian man walks out of a damaged house as he checks on his belongings after the 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia. EPA / STR
  • Patients are evacuated to a parking lot outside a damaged hospital after an earthquake hit the city of Banyumas, Central Java, Indonesia. Idhad Zakaria / Antara Foto via Reuters
    Patients are evacuated to a parking lot outside a damaged hospital after an earthquake hit the city of Banyumas, Central Java, Indonesia. Idhad Zakaria / Antara Foto via Reuters
  • A man inspects the damage at a school building after an earthquake in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia. Erwin Widiagiri / AP Photo
    A man inspects the damage at a school building after an earthquake in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia. Erwin Widiagiri / AP Photo
  • Motorists are stuck in traffic as they try to reach higher ground amid fears of a tsunami, following an earthquake in Cilacap, Central Java, Indonesia. Wagino / AP Photo
    Motorists are stuck in traffic as they try to reach higher ground amid fears of a tsunami, following an earthquake in Cilacap, Central Java, Indonesia. Wagino / AP Photo
  • An Indonesian man walks inside a damaged room in the Banyumas regional public hospital in the aftermath of a 6.5 magnitude earthquake in Banyumas, Central Java, Indonesia. Bayi Nur / EPA
    An Indonesian man walks inside a damaged room in the Banyumas regional public hospital in the aftermath of a 6.5 magnitude earthquake in Banyumas, Central Java, Indonesia. Bayi Nur / EPA
  • Damaged equipment is seen at a hospital following an earthquake in Banyumas, Central Java, Indonesia. Agus Fitrah
    Damaged equipment is seen at a hospital following an earthquake in Banyumas, Central Java, Indonesia. Agus Fitrah
  • A man cleans up the wreckage of a house damaged by an earthquake in Sumelap Village, Tasikmalaya City, West Java, Indonesia. Antara Foto / Adeng Bustomi / Reuters
    A man cleans up the wreckage of a house damaged by an earthquake in Sumelap Village, Tasikmalaya City, West Java, Indonesia. Antara Foto / Adeng Bustomi / Reuters
  • A man inspects the damage at a school building following an earthquake in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia. Erwin Widiagiri / AP Photo
    A man inspects the damage at a school building following an earthquake in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia. Erwin Widiagiri / AP Photo

At least 3 killed in strong Indonesia quake


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A powerful magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck the island of Java in Indonesia just before midnight on Friday, with authorities reporting three deaths and damage to hundreds of buildings.

The US Geological Survey said the epicentre of the quake was located at a depth of 92 kilometres, about 52 kilometres southwest of Tasikmalaya.

Indonesia's national disaster management agency said the quake activated early tsunami warning systems in the south of Java, prompting thousands to evacuate from some coastal areas, but no tsunami was detected.

Tremors were felt in central and west Java.

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for the disaster agency, said in a press briefing on Saturday three people had been killed, seven injured and hundreds of buildings damaged, including schools, hospitals, and government buildings in West and Central Java.

Dozens of patients had to be helped to safety from a hospital in Banyumas and were given shelter in tents, he said.

He posted on his Twitter page photos of people scouring collapsed buildings.

The quake swayed buildings for several seconds in the capital Jakarta. Some residents of high rise apartment buildings in central Jakarta quickly escaped their apartments, local media reported.

Indonesia's meteorology and geophysics agency said a magnitude 5.7 quake early on Saturday also struck south of West Java. It said the quake did not have tsunami potential.

Java, Indonesia's most densely populated island, is home to more than half of its 250 million people.